I, for one, have reduced my business travel. It's just not as much "fun" as it used to be. It appears to me that reducing expenses (and in particular travel expenses) is very fashionable nowadays. I don't really agree.

1. Phone calls, video conferences, etc are not a direct replacement for face-to-face meetings. I have worked with both types of clients: those open to travel and those who avoided it in favor of calls/conferences. I can honestly say that things go MUCH smoother when you get to meet and iron things out, as opposed to endless chains of emails followed by calls clarifying the emails, etc. Travels cost more but they allow you to get more work done faster.

2. My clients used to be more open about travel expenses; now they seem to be very keen on specifying "THE CHEAPEST" for everything related to travel. What they fail to understand is that traveling is not all fun & games. Being away from home, family, etc does have disadvantages and if there isn't anything to compensate for that, then some people (such as myself) are not willing to travel anymore. Nice hotels, special treatment from airlines, FF miles, hotel points... all that made it worth it. Those incentives have been severely fleeced. Cheaper hotels, cheaper airlines (and class of service), more inconvenient itineraries, less miles, less hotel points... more hassle for a diminished reward. Thanks, but no thanks. I used to be Plat, now I'm Gold (qualified for next year, too), but the following year I don't expect to qualify for more than Silver.

As a corollary, I think the new draconian FB rules are a bad idea because of this. Travelers who were obligated to fly on cheap inflexible Y tix (dictated by clients or corporate rules) at least accumulated miles and had some incentive to keep traveling on business. Take that away... my a$$ is staying home!